Respiratory Physiology & Neurobiology 175 (2011) 130–139
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Chest wall volume changes during inspiratory loaded breathing Stefanie Hostettler a,b,c , Sabine K. Illi a,b , Evelyn Mohler a , Andrea Aliverti d , Christina M. Spengler a,b,∗ a
Exercise Physiology, Institute of Human Movement Sciences, ETH Zurich, Winterthurerstrasse 190, 8057 Zurich, Switzerland Institute of Physiology and Zurich Center for Integrative Human Physiology (ZIHP), University of Zurich, Winterthurerstrasse 190, 8057 Zurich, Switzerland c Swiss Paraplegic Research, Guido A. Zäch Strasse 4, 6207 Nottwil, Switzerland d TBM Lab, Dipartimento di Bioingegneria, Politecnico di Milano, P.zza L. da Vinci 32, 20133 Milano, Italy b
a r t i c l e
i n f o
Article history: Accepted 4 October 2010 Keywords: Respiratory mechanics Respiratory muscle recruitment Muscle fatigue Respiratory control Optoelectronic plethysmography
a b s t r a c t We assessed the effect of inspiratory loaded breathing (ILB) on respiratory muscle strength and investigated the extent to which respiratory muscle fatigue is associated with chest wall volume changes during ILB. Twelve healthy subjects performed ILB at 76 ± 11% of maximal inspiratory mouth pressure (MIP) for 1 h. MIP and breathing pattern during 3 min of normocapnic hyperpnea (NH) were measured before and after ILB. Breathing pattern and chest wall volume changes were assessed by optoelectronic plethysmography. After ILB, six subjects decreased MIP significantly (−16 ± 10%; p < 0.05), while the other six subjects did not (0 ± 7%, p = 0.916). Only subjects with decreased MIP after ILB lowered end-expiratory rib cage volume (volume at which inspiration is initiated) below resting values during ILB. During NH after ILB, tidal volume was smaller in subjects with decreased MIP (−19 ± 16%, p < 0.05), while it remained unchanged in the other group (−3 ± 11%, p = 0.463). These results suggest that respiratory muscle fatigue depends on the lung volume from which inspiratory efforts are made during ILB. © 2010 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.
1. Introduction Inspiratory loaded breathing (ILB) is a common training method to improve respiratory muscle strength. ILB involves highresistance, low-speed contractions using external resistance or threshold pressure loads. The training effects of ILB on respiratory muscle function, physical performance, and perception of breathing have been extensively investigated in healthy subjects (McConnell and Romer, 2004; Sheel, 2002) and in pulmonary patients (Geddes et al., 2008), but findings remain controversial. Most studies show an increase in maximal inspiratory pressure (MIP) after ILB-training, some also demonstrate improvements in exercise capacity (e. g. Enright et al., 2006; Mickleborough et al., 2010; Romer et al., 2002a; Volianitis et al., 2001) while others fail to show any functional improvements during exercise (e. g. Hanel and Secher, 1991; Williams et al., 2002). The lack of functional improvement has been explained by learning effects, rather than structural and functional adaptations, being responsible for MIPincreases after ILB-training (Eastwood et al., 1998; Hart et al., 2001; Larson et al., 1993; Polkey and Moxham, 2004).
∗ Corresponding author at: University and ETH Zurich, Exercise Physiology, Winterthurerstrasse 190, 8057 Zurich, Switzerland. Tel.: +41 44 635 50 07; fax: +41 44 635 68 14. E-mail addresses:
[email protected] (S. Hostettler),
[email protected] (S.K. Illi),
[email protected] (E. Mohler),
[email protected] (A. Aliverti),
[email protected] (C.M. Spengler). 1569-9048/$ – see front matter © 2010 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved. doi:10.1016/j.resp.2010.10.001
Differences in training protocols might contribute to these inconsistent findings (Enright et al., 2006; Geddes et al., 2008). While details relating to training load, testing method, and ventilation are generally reported, most studies provide only few or no data on the range of lung volumes at which ILB was performed. It is recommended that subjects breathe over the entire lung capacity, i.e. from residual volume (RV) to total lung capacity (TLC). During home-based ILB, however, lung volumes are not controlled, and subjects might diverge from this instruction and adapt a breathing strategy to avoid respiratory muscle fatigue. In particular, starting inspiration at RV might be essential for effective respiratory strength training, since it is known that the strength of the rib cage muscles (RCM) (Braun et al., 1982; Saunders et al., 1979) determines MIP (assessed at RV) (Agostoni and Rahn, 1960; Hershenson et al., 1988; McCool et al., 1992), while the contribution of the diaphragm to MIP decreases towards RV (Braun et al., 1982; Hershenson et al., 1988). Furthermore, it has been shown that the greatest improvements of MIP were achieved after performing ILB-training at RV (Tzelepis et al., 1994). Hershenson et al. (1989) showed that during ILB from RV, RCM fatigued preferentially, and they concluded that RCM are the main force generators during ILB (McCool et al., 1992). Studies that did not control for lung volumes during ILB found either predominantly RCM- or diaphragm-fatigue developed (Eastwood et al., 1994; Rohrbach et al., 2003; Verges et al., 2006). This suggests that the diaphragm may also be involved during loaded breathing tasks. According to resistance training specificity (Morrissey et al., 1995), preventing RCM from fatiguing, will most likely
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result in an insufficient training stimulus and fail to improve RCMstrength. Therefore we aimed to assess the range of chest wall volumes (reflecting changes in lung volume) during ILB, carefully instructing subjects to breathe from RV to TLC prior to the breathing task, but there were no reminders during breathing, similar to homebased ILB. Accordingly, we wanted to investigate the influence of the range of chest wall volumes during ILB on changes in respiratory muscle strength, and to identify the ranges leading to preferential RCM- or diaphragm-fatigue. We assessed chest wall volume changes using optoelectronic plethysmography (Cala et al., 1996) (OEP; BTS Bioengineering, Milan, Italy) which allows volume changes of the chest wall to be partitioned into three compartments: the pulmonary rib cage, reflecting the activity of inspiratory and expiratory RCM; the abdominal rib cage, reflecting diaphragmatic activity; the abdomen, reflecting both diaphragm and abdominal muscle activity (Aliverti et al., 1997; Kenyon et al., 1997). To assess fatigue, we compared MIP and maximal expiratory pressure (MEP), sniff nasal inspiratory pressure (SNIP) as well as breathing pattern during volitional normocapnic hyperpnea (NH) at an exercise-simulated target ventilation before and after 1 h of ILB. Breathing pattern was used as an independent indicator of muscle fatigue, since rapid and shallow breathing is known to occur in the presence of fatigued (Mador and Acevedo, 1991b) or weak (Yang and Tobin, 1991) respiratory muscles and seems to be associated with RCM-fatigue (Verges et al., 2006). We hypothesized that (i) the relative contribution of the pulmonary rib cage to tidal volume would decrease due to RCM-fatigue during ILB, (ii) the dominance of RCM (versus diaphragm)-fatigue would depend on the lung volume at which inspiratory efforts are initiated during ILB, and that RCM-fatigue would be associated with starting at lower lung volume.
Subjects performed ILB while standing and were instructed to perform each breath from RV to TLC. During the test, no verbal encouragement was given. The initial target peak pressure was set at 80% MIP, which was reduced by 10 cmH2 O if the target could not be achieved for 10–20 s and it was increased again if possible, which was signaled by the subjects with a hand sign. Expiration was unloaded and breathing frequency was not imposed. Six subjects performed ILB using a threshold load device (Powerlung® , Houston, TX, USA). Loads were calibrated using a differential pressure transducer (DP45-30, Validyne Northridge, CA, USA) according to the method of Wells et al. (2005). Six subjects performed ILB using a resistive load device (MicroRMA® , MicroMedical, Kent, UK). Subjects using the resistive load device were instructed to perform square wave pressures to produce a most similar time-pressure-pattern to that obtained during threshold loaded breathing. Visual feedback of the target pressure and the pressures achieved was given to the subjects.
2. Materials and methods
2.5. Volitional normocapnic hyperpnea (NH)
2.1. Subjects
Subjects performed NH using a partial rebreathing-system connected to the metabolic cart equipped with an infrared absorption sensor for CO2 -measurement to ensure normocapnia. Target minute ventilation was set at 70% of maximal voluntary ventilation, tidal volume and breathing frequency were not imposed. Subjects were verbally encouraged by the experimenter if minute ventilation dropped below the target.
Twelve healthy subjects (8f, 4m) with normal lung function were studied. After detailed information of the test procedures, subjects gave their written informed consent. The protocol was approved by the ethics committee of the ETH Zurich (EK2007-19) and performed according to the Declaration of Helsinki. Participants were required to refrain from strenuous physical activity for 48 h and from any physical activity the day before testing. Drinking caffeinated or alcoholic beverages on test days was forbidden and no food was allowed within the last 2 h before testing. 2.2. Study protocol Subjects reported to the laboratory on three separate occasions, separated by at least 48 h. Each subject was naïve to the loaded breathing protocol prior to the first session. During the first session, participants performed familiarization trials with the ILB and NH breathing devices and practiced lung function and respiratory muscle strength measurement maneuvers. The following two sessions were randomized. One session included the assessment of lung function, SNIP, MIP, MEP, 5 min of quiet breathing, 3 vital capacity maneuvers, 1 h of ILB, lung function, SNIP, MIP, and MEP measurement, concluded by 3 min of NH (NHafter ). The other session consisted of 3 min of NH (NHbaseline ). OEP-recordings were performed during ILB and NH. 2.3. Lung function and respiratory muscle strength Lung function was assessed according to standard procedures (Miller et al., 2005) using a metabolic cart (Quark b2 , Cosmed,
Rome, Italy). Baseline values were expressed as percent predicted using the prediction equations of Quanjer et al. (1993). MIP (from RV), MEP (from TLC), and SNIP (from functional residual capacity; FRC) were assessed according to standard procedures (ATS/ERS, 2002) using the MicroRPM device (MicroMedical, Kent, UK). A minimum of five technically satisfactory measurements were conducted and the highest of three measurements with less than 5% variability was defined as the maximum (Wen et al., 1997). Baseline values were expressed as percent predicted using the prediction equations of Wilson et al. (1984) and Uldry and Fitting (1995). 2.4. Inspiratory loaded breathing (ILB)
2.6. Optoelectronic plethysmography The volumes displaced by the three compartments of the chest wall during ILB and NH were measured using OEP (Cala et al., 1996) which records movements of 89 markers placed on the trunk of the subjects via 6 infrared cameras (Fig. 1). The following parameters were derived from OEP-data; end-inspiratory and end-expiratory volumes (relative to average end-expiratory volume during quiet breathing), percentage contribution of the different compartments to tidal volume, tidal volume, breathing frequency, minute ventilation, mean inspiratory flow, and duty cycle. 2.7. Data analysis OEP data was averaged over 1 min of quiet breathing, the first 3 min (start), the middle 1 min (middle), the last 3 min (end) of ILB, and over 3 min of NHbaseline and NHafter . To test for significant changes in the course of ILB, the Friedman test was applied. When significant, pairwise comparisons were performed using the Wilcoxon sign rank test. This test was also used for comparisons of data assessed before and after ILB. In addition, subjects were post-hoc divided into two groups. First, subjects were grouped according to the device (threshold versus resistive) used during
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S. Hostettler et al. / Respiratory Physiology & Neurobiology 175 (2011) 130–139 Table 1 Subject characteristics, lung function, and respiratory muscle strength. Group A Age, years Height, cm Weight, kg FVC, % pred FEV1 , % pred PEF, % pred MVV, % pred MIP, % pred MEP, % pred SNIP, % pred
32 169 64 119 112 122 133 144 142 79
± ± ± ± ± ± ± ± ± ±
3 8 10 13 14 17 28 30 48 15
Group B 27 175 63 115 110 106 124 119 120 71
± ± ± ± ± ± ± ± ± ±
2 9 9 10 11 12 19 19 37 23
p-Value 0.010 0.335 0.749 0.423 0.262 0.109 0.262 0.109 0.337 0.602
Data is given as mean ± SD. Group A (MIP decrease, 4 females, 2 males); Group B (no MIP decrease, 4 females, 2 males); FVC, forced vital capacity; FEV1 , forced expiratory volume in 1 s; PEF, peak expiratory flow; MVV, maximal voluntary ventilation; MIP, maximal inspiratory pressure; MEP, maximal expiratory pressure.
Fig. 1. Marker position and geometrical model (optoelectronic plethysmography). Schematic diagram of the thoraco-abdominal surface triangulation (modified from www.btsbioengineering.com). The chest wall volume is modeled as the sum of the lung-apposed rib cage (pulmonary rib cage), diaphragm-apposed rib cage (abdominal rib cage) and abdomen (abdomen).
ILB. Between-group comparisons of baseline values and withingroup changes were performed using the Mann–Whitney U test. Since no significant difference was detected between groups (see Section 3), subjects were stratified according to the change in MIP after ILB. During MIP assessments, values within 5% were considered as reproducible. Therefore we considered an MIP-change greater than 5% between assessments as a criterion for defining an MIP-decrease. Subjects with an MIP-decrease greater than 5% (n = 6) were assigned to group A (4f, 2m). Subjects with an MIPdecrease of less than or equal to 5% MIP (n = 6) were assigned to group B (4f, 2m). Comparisons between these two groups as well as between groups of different gender were also performed with the Mann–Whitney U test. All results are expressed as mean ± standard deviation (SD), unless otherwise stated, and p < 0.05 was considered as statistically significant (SPSS 17.0, Chicago, IL, USA). 3. Results 3.1. Threshold versus resistive loading Mean peak pressures during ILB were not significantly different (p = 0.873) between the group using the threshold device (75 ± 7% MIP; 4 group A, 2 group B; 5f, 1m) and the group using the resistive device (76 ± 7% MIP; 2 group A, 4 group B; 3f, 3m). Changes of the chest wall compartments during ILB (Fig. 2), the adherence to breathe over the entire vital capacity (threshold 45 ± 11% versus resistive 36 ± 14% VC) as well as mean tidal volume, breathing frequency, inspiratory flow, and inspiratory time, were not significantly different between groups using the different devices during ILB (Fig. 3). 3.2. Lung function and respiratory muscle strength Anthropometric data, baseline lung function and respiratory muscle strength are shown in Table 1. Subjects in group A were significantly older than those in group B. Changes in MIP, MEP and SNIP did not correlate with age nor with the corresponding baseline values (both p > 0.05). Also, these changes did not differ significantly between female and male subjects (all p > 0.05). Average
peak pressures during ILB were 77 ± 14% for group A and 74 ± 10% of MIP for group B (p = 0.631) with no significant change in the course of ILB. After ILB, MIP and peak expiratory flow were significantly reduced in group A, whereas forced inspiratory volume in 1 s and SNIP were significantly lower in group B (Table 2). Individual values of MIP and SNIP before and after ILB are shown in Fig. 4. 3.3. Chest wall volumes and breathing pattern during ILB At the start of ILB, the average contribution of the three chest wall compartments to tidal volume was not significantly different between group A (pulmonary rib cage: 48 ± 6%, abdominal rib cage: 23 ± 2%, abdomen: 29 ± 8%) and group B (pulmonary rib cage: 53 ± 10%, abdominal rib cage: 25 ± 7%, abdomen: 22 ± 5%). No significant changes were observed in the course of ILB. At the start of ILB, end-expiratory chest wall volume (EEV; beginning of inspiration) was significantly closer to RV in group A (15 ± 10% of vital capacity) than in group B (34 ± 15% of vital capacity, p < 0.05; Fig. 5). During ILB, for group A EEV of the pulmonary rib cage remained significantly below FRC (p < 0.01). In contrast, EEV of the pulmonary rib cage was not significantly below FRC for group B (p = 0.100). During 1 h of ILB, EEV of the chest wall tended to increase in group A subjects (0.32 ± 0.32 L, p = 0.075) after 30 min, and significantly decreased towards the end, resulting from a significant decrease in EEV of the abdomen. For group B, end-inspiratory volume (EIV) of the chest wall and pulmonary rib cage significantly decreased after 30 min, and no further changes were observed. Breathing pattern was not significantly different between the two groups (Fig. 6). 3.4. Normocapnic hyperpnea Mean end-tidal CO2 pressure was 37 ± 3 mmHg during NHbaseline and 37 ± 4 mmHg during NHafter . Mean minute ventilation during NH was not significantly different between group A (NHbaseline : 105 ± 24 L min−1 , NHafter : 96 ± 23 L min−1 , p = 0.463) and group B (NHbaseline : 111 ± 28 L min−1 , NHafter : 114 ± 22 L min−1 , p = 0.600). In group A, end-inspiratory chest wall volume was reduced during NHafter (Fig. 7) resulting in a decreased tidal volume (Fig. 8). Breathing frequency and duty cycle remained unchanged in both groups. 4. Discussion In half of the subjects, ILB resulted in a significant decrease in MIP without a change in SNIP, reflecting a decrease in RCM strength (when assessed from RV), while in the other half, SNIP
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Fig. 2. Chest wall volume changes in response to inspiratory threshold and resistive loaded breathing. Data is given as mean ± SE. Changes in end-inspiratory (EI) and end-expiratory (EE) volumes, expressed relative to functional residual capacity (FRC) at the start, middle, and end of inspiratory loaded breathing. QB, quiet breathing. No significant differences were found between the two groups in the course of inspiratory loaded breathing.
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Fig. 3. Breathing pattern in response to inspiratory threshold and resistive loaded breathing. Data is given as mean ± SE. Tidal volume, breathing frequency, inspiratory flow and inspiratory time during inspiratory loaded breathing, grouped by threshold (4 subjects group A, 2 subjects group B) and the resistive (2 subjects group A, 4 subjects group B) loaded breathing. No significant differences were found between the two groups.
Table 2 Lung function and respiratory muscle strength before and after inspiratory loaded breathing. Group A Before Lung function FVC, L 4.8 3.8 FEV1 , L 9.6 PEF, L s−1 4.3 FIV1 , L −1 7.1 PIF, L s Respiratory muscle strength SNIP, cmH2 O 63 MEP, cmH2 O 157 121 MIP, cmH2 O
± ± ± ± ±
p-Value
Group B
Within group
Before
0.6 0.5 1.8 0.6 2.1
0.345 0.144 0.043 0.080 0.225
5.2 4.2 9.0 4.2 6.6
55 ± 35 150 ± 41 101 ± 21
0.080 0.311 0.028
After 0.6 0.5 1.9 0.7 1.9
± 40 ± 59 ± 31
4.8 3.8 9.5 4.1 6.5
± ± ± ± ±
± ± ± ± ±
p-Value Within group
1.4 0.9 3.1 0.9 1.9
0.345 0.753 0.686 0.028 0.141
0.715 0.201 0.068 0.715 0.584
70 ± 19 131 ± 60 103 ± 20
0.042 0.080 0.916
0.461 0.631 0.004
After 1.2 0.8 2.5 0.8 1.7
82 ± 22 141 ± 58 104 ± 28
5.0 4.2 9.0 3.9 6.3
± ± ± ± ±
Data is given as mean ± SD. Group A (MIP decrease); Group B (no MIP decrease); FVC, forced vital capacity; FEV1 , forced expiratory volume in 1 s; PEF, peak expiratory flow; FIV1 , forced inspiratory volume in 1 s; PIF, peak inspiratory flow; SNIP, sniff nasal inspiratory pressure; MEP, maximal expiratory pressure; MIP, maximal inspiratory pressure. = difference between within group changes (after minus before values).
decreased significantly, without a change in MIP, reflecting most likely a decrease in diaphragmatic strength (ATS/ERS, 2002). Those subjects with a MIP-decrease after ILB lowered the EEV of the pulmonary rib cage significantly below FRC during ILB. These results indicate that predominant RCM-fatigue critically depends on the lung volume from which inspiratory efforts are initiated during ILB.
4.1. Threshold versus resistive loading Although two different loading devices were used, inspiratory pressures, chest wall volumes and breathing pattern during ILB did not differ between subjects performing ILB with the threshold or resistive breathing device. Subjects performing ILB with the resistive device could have reduced the inspiratory effort by reducing
Fig. 4. Maximal inspiratory mouth pressure and sniff nasal inspiratory pressure before and after inspiratory loaded breathing. Individual values of maximal inspiratory mouth pressure (MIP) and sniff nasal inspiratory pressure (SNIP) before and after inspiratory loaded breathing for group A and group B. Means are represented by the black symbols.
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Fig. 5. Chest wall volume changes during inspiratory loaded breathing. Data is given as mean ± SE. Changes in end-inspiratory (EI) and end-expiratory (EE) volumes, expressed relative to functional residual capacity (FRC) at the start, middle, and end of inspiratory loaded breathing. Grey lines show maximal EI/EE volumes of the vital capacity. QB, quiet breathing; RV, residual volume; TLC, total lung capacity. *Significant difference within group (p < 0.05), and § for between group difference (p < 0.05).
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Fig. 6. Breathing pattern during inspiratory loaded breathing. Data is given as mean ± SE. Tidal volume, breathing frequency and duty cycle for group A and B during inspiratory loaded breathing. *Significant difference within group (p < 0.05).
inspiratory flow, this was not observed and there is no evidence, that changes in MIP or SNIP in response to ILB were influenced by the type of load used in the present study. However, it is to note that – despite performing ILB at comparable pressures and breathing pattern – respiratory mechanics during inspiratory efforts depend to some extent on the type of load used, i.e. during threshold loading, inspiratory flow starts only after an isovolume respiratory muscle contraction when the threshold pressure is reached while during resistive breathing, inspiratory flow is present from the start of the inspiratory phase. Although load compensation is slightly different, the present results indicate that the type of load used does not affect the change in respiratory muscle strength after ILB. 4.2. Chest wall volumes during ILB and the effects on muscle strength By using OEP we could show for the first time the range of chest wall volume displacement during ILB over an extended period of time. Interestingly, none of the subjects breathed from RV to TLC, despite being instructed to do. The relative contributions of the different compartments to tidal volumes did not change during ILB, but we found that differences in the EEV of the pulmonary rib cage during ILB resulted either in an MIP-decrease or an SNIPdecrease. The results suggest that lowering EEV of the rib cage below resting values by increasing expiratory rib cage (i.e. internal intercostals) muscle recruitment (Romaniuk et al., 1992) might be responsible for the development of RCM-fatigue. Contractions of the internal intercostal muscles during expiration elongate preinspiratory length of the external intercostal muscles, i.e. part of the RCM (Decramer and De Troyer, 1984), possibly instigating a range of motion which makes them more susceptible to fatigue. Support for this assumption is provided by studies showing increased sensitivity of extended muscles to fatigue (Fitch and McComas, 1985; Place et al., 2005). In addition, it has been shown that exercising subjects avoid lowering EEV of the pulmonary rib cage (Aliverti et al., 1997), possibly to prevent the development of RCM-fatigue. Subjects in group B might have decreased EIV from start to the middle to facilitate pressure generation and possibly reduce development of fatigue. This would make sense as it is known that pressure generation capacity and endurance decrease with increasing lung volume (Brancatisano et al., 1993; Tzelepis et al., 1988). The decrease of EIV of the chest wall was the consequence of lowering EIV of the pulmonary rib cage. By decreasing EIV of the pulmonary rib cage, opposing forces to the diaphragm might have been reduced, which would be an additional indicator that subjects in group B used predominantly the diaphragm. Support for this is given by the significant SNIP-decrease after ILB and the lowered EEV of the abdomen during NH since lowering EEV brings the diaphragm in a better position to generate flow (Henke et al., 1988).
Similar to our findings, Verges et al. (2006) observed that either predominant RCM- or diaphragm-fatigue can occur as a consequence of ILB in subjects who freely chose their breathing pattern. In their study, only subjects with predominant RCM-fatigue showed a decrease in tidal volume during subsequent exercise, as a consequence of decreased end-inspiratory lung volume, similar to subjects of group A, who lowered tidal volume during NH after ILB. ILB and NH differ fundamentally in their contraction pattern: ILB involves high-pressure, low-speed contractions, while NH is characterized by low-pressure, high-speed contractions. During unloaded breathing at high breathing frequencies (ventilation during high-intensity exercise or NH), total elastic work (to overcome recoil forces of the thorax) is higher compared to ILB. In this context, our results suggest that RCM seem decisive to maintain tidal volume and end-inspiratory volume high during unloaded breathing while diaphragmatic fatigue induced by ILB did not seem to affect NH performance. In fact, Romer et al. (2002b) demonstrated that after ILB-training (from RV to TLC), subjects could maintain their tidal volume and end-inspiratory volume for a longer duration during exercise compared to controls. 4.3. Breathing pattern during ILB During ILB, the work of breathing is a function of pressure generation over time and volume. Therefore differences in breathing pattern between groups might have resulted in differences in work of breathing and consequently, changes in MIP or SNIP. However, neither breathing pattern nor pressure generation was different between groups A and B. This is in accordance with previous findings showing that during ILB, respiratory muscle fatigue does not necessarily result in an altered breathing pattern (Mador and Acevedo, 1991a). Therefore, the difference in development of respiratory muscle fatigue between groups A and B is unlikely to result from differences in work of breathing. 4.4. Limitations of the study First, we assessed respiratory muscle fatigue by voluntary respiratory maneuvers rather than using phrenic nerve stimulation to assess changes in twitch trans-diaphragmatic pressure by use of esophageal and gastric catheters. This is because we aimed to have conditions similar to home-based training and to assure undisturbed muscle recruitment during ILB. While we are aware that voluntary maneuvers may include central fatigue, we believe that the observed MIP-decrease in group A mainly reflects peripheral RCM-fatigue, as it seems unlikely that only subjects of group A would have exhibited central fatigue. In addition, tidal volume during NH after ILB was only reduced in group A, which we consider as an independent index of RCM-fatigue (Verges et al., 2006).
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Fig. 7. Chest wall volume changes during normocapnic hyperpnea. Data is given as mean ± SE. Changes in end-inspiratory (EI) and end-expiratory (EE) volumes, expressed relative to functional residual capacity (FRC) during normocapnic hyperpnea before (NHbaseline ) and after (NHafter ) inspiratory resistive breathing. Grey lines show maximal EI/EE volumes of the vital capacity. QB, quiet breathing; RV, residual volume; TLC, total lung capacity. *Significant difference within group (p < 0.05).
Second, the sample size is rather small. However, as the main outcome variable was the change in MIP, which has good reproducibility, a two-sided power for detecting a 5% change of MIP was calculated to be 88% at an alpha level of 0.05 for the sample size used in our study. Therefore, we believe that our findings are not compromised by the sample size.
Third, the use of two different devices can be seen as a major concern, in particular since the use of the different devices by group A and B did not come out to be balanced. However, since changes in respiratory muscle strength after ILB were not different between the threshold and the resistive group, we believe that the development of fatigue during ILB is independent of the training device used.
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Fig. 8. Breathing pattern during normocapnic hyperpnea. Data is given as mean ± SE. Tidal volume, breathing frequency and duty cycle for group A and B during normocapnic hyperpnea. *Significant difference within group (p < 0.05).
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